Apparatus and methods for selective enforcement of secondary content viewing

ABSTRACT

Methods and apparatus for selectively enforcing required insertion or viewing of secondary content, such as advertisements or promotions, in a content distribution network. In one embodiment, the network is a managed network (e.g., cable television, satellite, or the like), and the method includes identifying secondary content with a particular attribute or property (e.g., an advertisement that a user has watched before), and selectively enabling one or more “trick mode” functions relating to that secondary content. In one implementation, audio codes or watermarks are inserted into the secondary content and detected when the content is accessed or rendered; if the detected content matches a database or listing of previously played content for that user or premises, the trick mode functionality (e.g., FF or “skip”) is enabled, thereby allowing the user to bypass the content.

PRIORITY AND RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a divisional of and claims priority to co-owned U.S.patent application Ser. No. 15/853,468 filed Dec. 22, 2017 and entitled“APPARATUS AND METHODS FOR SELECTIVE ENFORCEMENT OF DIGITAL CONTENTVIEWING”, issuing as U.S. Pat. No. 10,721,504 on Jul. 21, 2020, which isa divisional of and claims priority to co-owned U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 13/676,012 filed Nov. 13, 2012 and entitled “APPARATUS ANDMETHODS FOR SELECTIVE ENFORCEMENT OF SECONDARY CONTENT VIEWING”, andissued as U.S. Pat. No. 9,854,280 on Dec. 26, 2017, which claimspriority to commonly owned U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No.61/670,082 of the same title filed on Jul. 10, 2012, each of theforegoing which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

COPYRIGHT

A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains materialthat is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has noobjection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent documentor the patent disclosure, as it appears in the Patent and TrademarkOffice patent files or records, but otherwise reserves all copyrightrights whatsoever.

BACKGROUND 1. Technology Field

The disclosure relates generally to the field of data and contentdistribution and delivery via a content distribution or other network.In one exemplary aspect, the disclosure relates to the selectivedelivery of supplemental or secondary content such as advertising orpromotions.

2. Description of Related Technology

“Nielsen Ratings” are a well-known system of evaluating the viewinghabits of cross sections of the population. When collecting Nielsenratings, companies use statistical techniques to develop a samplepopulation which is a cross section of a larger national population.Theoretically, the viewing habits of the sample population will mirrorthe larger population. The company then measures the viewing habits ofthe population to identify, among other things, what programs thepopulation is watching as well as the time and frequency at which thoseprograms are watched. This information is then extrapolated to gaininsight on the viewing habits of the larger population. Historically,the Nielsen system has been the primary source of audience measurementinformation in the television industry. The Nielsen system, therefore,affects various aspects of television including inter alia, advertisingrates, schedules, viability of particular shows, etc., and has been alsorecently expanded from measuring an audience of program content tomeasuring an audience of advertising (i.e., Nielsen ratings may beprovided for advertisements themselves).

The Nielsen system collects data regarding audiences either (i) byasking viewers of various demographics to keep a written record of thetelevision shows they watch throughout the day and evening, or (ii) byusing “meters,” which are small devices connected to televisions inselected homes or which listen for an audio tone (aka “watermark”) whichelectronically gathers the viewing habits of the home and transmits theinformation nightly to Nielsen or a proxy entity over a phone line orother connection. See the discussion regarding the NAVE (Nielsen AudioVideo Encoding) system provided infra.

For media content providers such as cable and satellite companies andthe like, a major issue is how to more accurately target populationsegments for advertising campaigns based on particular characteristicsof an audience, opportunities for insertion (or replacement) of anadvertisement, and other factors. It is most desirable for advertisersto have advertisements for products or services that are targeted to aparticular demographic to be viewed by that demographic; such targetingcan be accomplished at least in part based on data such as that providedby the aforementioned Nielsen system.

However, the foregoing needs and desires of the service providers andadvertisers must be balanced against those of their customers(subscribers), in that it is ultimately subscriber satisfaction whichkeeps a given individual or household or business using that serviceprovider. One facet of this subscriber satisfaction relates to notunnecessarily inundating the subscriber with advertisements orpromotions. Subscriber frustration can readily result from, e.g.: (i)repetition of the same advertisement or promotion over and over,especially within a comparatively short period; (ii) advertisements orpromotions which are unduly long (whether taken individually, or incombination with other advertisements or promotions), so as to keep auser away from the primary programming content (e.g., television show,movie, game, etc.); and/or (iii) advertising or promotional contentwhich is not applicable or even inappropriate for viewing by a givenuser at, e.g., a specific time, or in general.

Aside from the foregoing “frustration” aspect, many television viewerstoday simply pay less attention to video commercials in broadcastchannels, as they can merely change channels and switch to otherprogramming on other channels during commercial breaks; the wider choiceof programming currently offered by service providers gives the usermore options to watch alternate content during advertisements. Users mayalso skip the commercials when a consumer watches a program previouslyrecorded, such as on a DVR. Users may also simply walk away from thetelevision and/or engage in some other activity. The proliferation ofmobile computing devices such as laptops, smartphones, and tablets inconsumer households has only exacerbated this problem, as such devicestend to draw consumers' attention away from the television during thecommercial.

Hence, broadcast video commercials could become less engaging for thetelevision audience over time, and less effective in getting theadvertiser's message across to the viewers (and emphasizing their brandand products).

Network Content Storage

Network-based content recording and storage (such as e.g., the exemplary“Start Over” and “Look Back” network DVR services offered by theAssignee hereof) allow users of a network to obtain what would otherwisebe “live” content (e.g., linear television broadcasts or the like) atsome time subsequent to their actual airing, thereby enabling a user toview programming which otherwise would be missed. These systemstypically receive instructions from the user as to which programmingthey want to view, and the network “cloud” streams the requested contentto that user. Variants of these types of systems either receive priorinstructions from a user before the broadcast of the live event (e.g.,“record program XYZ airing on channel 123 at 8 pm on 1/1/12”), oralternatively store various content based on some other criteria (e.g.,popularity), and then allow the user a period of time to watch it.

Such “network DVR” systems typically will disable trick modefunctionality (i.e., fast forward), which would otherwise allow a viewerof the cloud-recorded content to skip over an advertisement orpromotion. This is often a quid pro quo for the user having the abilityto recapture via the network content that they otherwise would havemissed; i.e., “you can watch the (live) program you want, but you'llhave to watch the advertisements also.” Regardless of the motivation,such “must watch” features are often a source of annoyance oraggravation to viewers, and hence may significantly reduce subscribersatisfaction with the network DVR service (or the service provider,programmer, and advertiser individually or collectively).

Hence, there is a need for improved methods and apparatus whicheffectively balance the service provider's and advertiser's needsrelating to secondary content exposure and penetration (and henceultimately revenue derived therefrom), and the desire of manysubscribers to avoid such secondary content whenever possible (or atleast that which is either overly repetitive, too long, orinapplicable/inappropriate for their viewing needs).

These methods and apparatus would also ideally be provided usingsubstantially extant network infrastructure and components, and would becompatible with a number of different client device and delivery systemsincluding both wired and wireless technologies.

SUMMARY

The foregoing needs are addressed herein by providing, inter alia,methods and apparatus adapted to selectively enforce viewing ofadvertising or promotional content to be delivered over a network to oneor more network devices and associated users.

In a first aspect, a method of operating a content distribution networkis disclosed. In one embodiment, the method includes selectivelyenabling one or more functional aspects of a user premises device basedat least in part on a user's prior activity relating to secondarycontent.

In a second aspect, a content management apparatus for use within acontent distribution network is disclosed.

In a third aspect, computer readable apparatus comprising media adaptedto contain a computer program is disclosed. In one embodiment, theprogram has a plurality of instructions, which, when executed,selectively enable one or more functions of an associated mediarendering device.

In a fourth aspect, a method of doing business in a content distributionnetwork is disclosed. In one embodiment, the method includes creditingadvertisers for advertising impressions that are missed by a userfast-forwarding or skipping over ads.

In a fifth aspect, CPE adapted to collect data useful in advertising orpromotion delivery is disclosed. In one embodiment, the CPE comprises acable or satellite digital set-top box having client software runningthereon, the client software being configured to collect requisite dataso as to selectively enforce advertising viewing. The data may also betransmitted to a network (e.g., headend) system via e.g., upstream/OOB(“out of band”) communications.

In a sixth aspect, a mobile wireless device is disclosed. In oneembodiment, the device is a smartphone or tablet computer, and includesan application (e.g., “app”) running thereon which is configured toenforce one or more network operator or advertiser policies regardingsecondary content.

In a seventh aspect, a method of managing user interaction with one ormore advertisements is disclosed. In one embodiment, the method includesproviding the user with a dynamic menu structure when encounteringadvertisements within a program stream (e.g., during fast forwarding ina network-based DVR context). The menu provides the user with optionsfor interacting or dispensing of the advertisement, such as, e.g.,skipping, saving for later, watching, etc.

In an eighth aspect, an apparatus configured to provide interactivefunctionality to a user thereof is disclosed. In one embodiment, theapparatus includes a processor and a storage device in datacommunication with the processor. The storage device comprises at leastone computer program executable on the processor, the at least onecomputer program configured to, when executed: during trick modeoperation, evaluate content being rendered for the user to identify atleast one instance of secondary content. For the identified at least oneinstance, the program is configured to provide the user with the abilityto select from a plurality of options for treatment of the secondarycontent; receive a user selection of at least one of the plurality ofoptions; and implement the received user selection.

In a ninth aspect, premises apparatus configured to provide selectivesecondary content enforcement for a user thereof is disclosed. In oneembodiment, the apparatus includes: a processor; a mass storage devicein data communication with the processor; and a storage device in datacommunication with the processor, the storage device comprising at leastone computer program executable on the processor. In one variant, the atleast one computer program is configured to, when executed: evaluatecontent being rendered for the user and stored on the mass storagedevice to identify at least one instance of secondary content; for theidentified at least one instance, determine a policy to apply to therendering of the secondary content; and apply the determined policy tothe rendering of the secondary content.

In a tenth aspect, a method of providing content to a user of a mobiledevice is disclosed. In one embodiment, the method includes: providingcontent to a recording device in communication with the mobile device,the content comprising primary and secondary content; recording theprimary and secondary content on the recording device; streaming therecorded content to the mobile device from the recording device; andselectively enabling or disabling one or more secondary content controlfunctions at the mobile device based at least in part on a criterionrelated to the user's interaction with the secondary content.

Other features and advantages of the present disclosure will immediatelybe recognized by persons of ordinary skill in the art with reference tothe attached drawings and detailed description of exemplary embodimentsas given below.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram illustrating an exemplary HFC cablenetwork configuration useful with the present disclosure.

FIG. 1a is a functional block diagram illustrating one exemplary HFCcable network headend configuration useful with the present disclosure.

FIG. 1b is a functional block diagram illustrating one exemplary localservice node configuration useful with the present disclosure.

FIG. 1c is a functional block diagram illustrating one exemplarybroadcast switched architecture (BSA) network useful with the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 1d is a functional block diagram illustrating one exemplarypacketized content delivery network architecture useful with the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 2 is a high-level block diagram illustrating one embodiment of anetwork-centric selective enforcement architecture according to thepresent disclosure.

FIG. 3 is a high-level block diagram illustrating one embodiment of apremises-centric selective enforcement architecture according to thepresent disclosure.

FIG. 4 is a flow diagram illustrating a first embodiment of a method ofselectively enforcing functional restrictions according to the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 5 is a flow diagram illustrating a second embodiment of a method ofselectively enforcing functional restrictions according to the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 6 is a functional block diagram illustrating an exemplaryembodiment of CPE adapted to support selective functional enablementaccording to the disclosure.

All Figures © Copyright 2012 Time Warner Cable, Inc. All rightsreserved.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Reference is now made to the drawings wherein like numerals refer tolike parts throughout.

As used herein, the term “application” refers generally and withoutlimitation to a unit of executable software that implements a certainfunctionality or theme. The themes of applications vary broadly acrossany number of disciplines and functions (such as on-demand contentmanagement, e-commerce transactions, brokerage transactions, homeentertainment, calculator etc.), and one application may have more thanone theme. The unit of executable software generally runs in apredetermined environment; for example, the unit could comprise adownloadable Java Xlet™ that runs within the JavaTV™ environment.

As used herein, the terms “client device” and “end user device” include,but are not limited to, set-top boxes (e.g., DSTBs), gateways, modems,personal computers (PCs), and minicomputers, whether desktop, laptop, orotherwise, and mobile devices such as handheld computers, PDAs, personalmedia devices (PMDs), tablets, and smartphones.

As used herein, the term “codec” refers to a video, audio, or other datacoding and/or decoding algorithm, process or apparatus including,without limitation, those of the MPEG (e.g., MPEG-1, MPEG-2,MPEG-4/H.264, etc.), Real (RealVideo, etc.), AC-3 (audio), DiVX,XViD/ViDX, Windows Media Video (e.g., WMV 7, 8, 9, 10, or 11), ATI Videocodec, or VC-1 (SMPTE standard 421M) families.

As used herein, the term “computer program” or “software” is meant toinclude any sequence or human or machine cognizable steps which performa function. Such program may be rendered in virtually any programminglanguage or environment including, for example, C/C++, Fortran, COBOL,PASCAL, assembly language, markup languages (e.g., HTML, SGML, XML,VoXML), and the like, as well as object-oriented environments such asthe Common Object Request Broker Architecture (CORBA), Java™ (includingJ2ME, Java Beans, etc.), Binary Runtime Environment (e.g., BREW), andthe like.

As used herein, the term “consideration” refers without limitation toany payment, compensation, bargain, barter, release, option, or otherarrangement wherein something of actual, perceived or potential futurevalue (whether by an objective or subjective standard) is given,assigned, transferred or exchanged. For example, one form ofconsideration is a monetary payment. Another comprises an exchange ofservices. Yet another comprises release from an obligation or debt.Still another form comprises a subscription or installment plan. Yet afurther form comprises providing a limited time option. Myriad otherforms of consideration will be appreciated by those of ordinary skillgiven the present disclosure.

The terms “Consumer Premises Equipment (CPE)” and “host device” referwithout limitation to any type of electronic equipment located within aconsumer's or user's premises and connected to a network. The term “hostdevice” includes terminal devices that have access to digital televisioncontent via a satellite, cable, or terrestrial network. The host devicefunctionality may be integrated into a digital television (DTV) set. Theterm “consumer premises equipment” (CPE) includes such electronicequipment such as set-top boxes, televisions, Digital Video Recorders(DVR), gateway storage devices (Furnace), and ITV Personal Computers.

As used herein, the term “database” refers generally to one or moretangible or virtual data storage locations, which may or may not bephysically co-located with each other or other system components.

As used herein, the term “display” means any type of device adapted todisplay information, including without limitation CRTs, LCDs, TFTs,plasma displays, LEDs, incandescent and fluorescent devices. Displaydevices may also include less dynamic devices such as, for example,printers, e-ink devices, and the like.

As used herein, the term “DVR” (digital video recorder) refers generallyto any type or recording mechanism and/or software environment wherebycontent sent over a network can be recorded and selectively recalled.Such DVR may be dedicated in nature, or part of a non-dedicated ormulti-function system.

As used herein, the terms “service”, “content”, and “stream” aresometimes used synonymously to refer to a sequence of packetized datathat is provided in what a subscriber may perceive as a service. A“service” (or “content”, or “stream”) in the former, specialized sensemay correspond to different types of services in the latter,non-technical sense. For example, a “service” in the specialized sensemay correspond to, among others, video broadcast, audio-only broadcast,pay-per-view, or video-on-demand. The perceivable content provided onsuch a “service” may be live, pre-recorded, delimited in time,undelimited in time, or of other descriptions. In some cases, a“service” in the specialized sense may correspond to what a subscriberwould perceive as a “channel” in traditional broadcast television.

As used herein, the term “DOCSIS” refers to any of the existing orplanned variants of the Data Over Cable Services InterfaceSpecification, including for example DOCSIS versions 1.0, 1.1, 2.0 and3.0.

As used herein, the term gateway includes, without limitation, devicesconfigured to interface with a network, and pass signals to or exchangesignals with, another device in communication therewith. Variousexemplary gateways are described in, inter alia, co-owned U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 11/818,236 filed on Jun. 13, 2007, entitled“PREMISES GATEWAY APPARATUS AND METHODS FOR USE IN A CONTENT-BASEDNETWORK”, and issued as U.S. Pat. No. 7,594,131 on Dec. 18, 2008; U.S.patent application Ser. No. 12/582,619 filed on Oct. 20, 2009, entitled“GATEWAY APPARATUS AND METHODS FOR DIGITAL CONTENT DELIVERY IN ANETWORK”, and issued as U.S. Pat. No. 9,027,062 on May 5, 2015; and U.S.patent application Ser. No. 12/480,597 filed on Jun. 8, 2009, entitled“MEDIA BRIDGE APPARATUS AND METHODS”, and issued as U.S. Pat. No.9,602,864 on Mar. 21, 2017, each of the foregoing being incorporatedherein by reference in its entirety.

As used herein, the term “headend” refers generally to a networkedsystem controlled by an operator (e.g., an MSO or multiple systemsoperator) that distributes programming to MSO clientele using clientdevices. Such programming may include literally any informationsource/receiver including, inter alia, free-to-air TV channels, pay TVchannels, interactive TV, and the Internet.

As used herein, the terms “Internet” and “internet” are usedinterchangeably to refer to inter-networks including, withoutlimitation, the Internet.

As used herein, the terms “microprocessor” and “digital processor” aremeant generally to include all types of digital processing devicesincluding, without limitation, digital signal processors (DSPs), reducedinstruction set computers (RISC), general-purpose (CISC) processors,microprocessors, gate arrays (e.g., FPGAs), PLDs, reconfigurablecomputer fabrics (RCFs), array processors, secure microprocessors, andapplication-specific integrated circuits (ASICs). Such digitalprocessors may be contained on a single unitary IC die, or distributedacross multiple components.

As used herein, the terms “MSO” or “multiple systems operator” referwithout limitation to a cable, fiber to the home (FTTH), fiber to thecurb (FTTC), satellite, Hybrid Fiber Copper (HFCu), or terrestrialnetwork provider having infrastructure required to deliver servicesincluding programming and data over those mediums.

As used herein, the terms “network” and “bearer network” refer generallyto any type of telecommunications or data network including, withoutlimitation, hybrid fiber coax (HFC) networks, HFCu networks, satellitenetworks, telco networks, and data networks (including MANs, WANs, LANs,WLANs, internets, and intranets). Such networks or portions thereof mayutilize any one or more different topologies (e.g., ring, bus, star,loop, etc.), transmission media (e.g., wired/RF cable, RF wireless,millimeter wave, optical, etc.) and/or communications or networkingprotocols.

As used herein, the term “interface” refers to any signal, data, orsoftware interface with a component, network or process including,without limitation, those of the FireWire (e.g., FW400, FW800, etc.),USB (e.g., USB2), Ethernet (e.g., 10/100, 10/100/1000 (GigabitEthernet), 10-Gig-E, etc.), MoCA, Coaxsys (e.g., TVnet™), radiofrequency tuner (e.g., in-band or OOB, cable modem, etc.), Wi-Fi(802.11), WiMAX (802.16), PAN (e.g., 802.15), cellular (e.g., 3G;LTE/LTE-A/TD-LTE, GSM, etc.) or IrDA families.

As used herein, the term “node” refers to any functional entityassociated with a network, such as for example an OLT or ONU, whetherphysically discrete or distributed across multiple locations.

As used herein, the term “QAM” refers to modulation schemes used forsending signals over cable networks. Such modulation scheme might useany constellation level (e.g. QPSK, 16-QAM, 64-QAM, 256-QAM, etc.)depending on details of a cable network. A QAM may also refer to aphysical channel modulated according to the schemes.

As used herein, the term “server” refers to any computerized component,system or entity regardless of form which is adapted to provide data,files, applications, content, or other services to one or more otherdevices or entities on a computer system or network.

As used herein, the term “service,” “content,” “program” and “stream”are sometimes used synonymously to refer to a sequence of packetizeddata that is provided in what a subscriber may perceive as a service. A“service” (or “content,” or “stream”) in the former, specialized sensemay correspond to different types of services in the latter,non-technical sense. For example, a “service” in the specialized sensemay correspond to, among others, video broadcast, audio-only broadcast,pay-per-view, or video-on-demand. The perceivable content provided onsuch a “service” may be live, pre-recorded, delimited in time,undelimited in time, or of other descriptions. In some cases, a“service” in the specialized sense may correspond to what a subscriberwould perceive as a “channel” in traditional broadcast television.

As used herein, the term “service group” refers without limitation toeither a group of service users (e.g., subscribers), or the resourcesshared by them in the form of, for example, entire cable RF signal, onlythe RF channels used to receive the service or otherwise treated as asingle logical unit by the network for resource assignment.

As used herein, the term “user interface” refers to, without limitation,any visual, graphical, tactile, audible, sensory, or other means ofproviding information to and/or receiving information from a user orother entity.

As used herein, the term “Wi-Fi” refers to, without limitation, any ofthe variants of IEEE-Std. 802.11 or related standards including 802.11a/b/g/n/s/v or 802.11-2012.

As used herein, the term “wireless” means any wireless signal, data,communication, or other interface including without limitation Wi-Fi,Bluetooth, 3G (3GPP/3GPP2), HSDPA/HSUPA, TDMA, CDMA (e.g., IS-95A,WCDMA, etc.), FHSS, DSSS, GSM, PAN/802.15, WiMAX (802.16), 802.20,narrowband/FDMA, OFDM, PCS/DCS, LTE/LTE-A/TD-LTE, analog cellular, CDPD,satellite systems, millimeter wave or microwave systems, acoustic, andinfrared (i.e., IrDA).

Overview

In one salient aspect, the present disclosure discloses methods andapparatus for selectively enforcing one or more rules regardingsecondary content insertion and user interaction therewith. In oneembodiment, the user accessing “cloud” stored primary content such as apreviously aired television program or movie is selectively given use offast-forward (FF) or other functions with respect to secondary content(e.g., advertisements or promotions), such that the user can decidewhether they wish to watch the secondary content, or rather fast-forwardthrough, skip it, or save it for later (e.g., in “cloud” storage).

Subscriber viewing is determined in one variant using informationcontained in the program stream(s), such as, e.g., Nielsen Audio VideoEncoder (NAVE) audio watermark data. The appropriate network entity, ora user's CPE in other variants, retains data relating to whichadvertisements have been viewed, and this information is used toselectively permit the user of the CPE to FF or skip the secondarycontent. This data can also be further used by a network entity (e.g.,server) for demographic or advertisement targeting analysis or the like.

Subscriber privacy and anonymity is also optionally maintained in oneembodiment via, e.g., hashing or encrypting data relating to the CPEand/or subscriber, thus ensuring that any data sent to the network isnot traceable to a specific user account.

In another embodiment, users encountering an advertisement whiletraversing a program stream (e.g., while fast-forwarding) are presentedwith one or more choices regarding viewing and/or interaction with theadvertisement, such as via an on-screen menu.

In yet another alternative, when a user selects to fast-forward anadvertisement, the frame rate and/or speed of the playback of theadvertisement is adjusted, and the audio content is provided to theuser, thereby still creating an “impression” of the advertisement.

In yet another embodiment, users traversing content recorded on premisesdevices such as DVRs or even mobile devices are provided the foregoingskipping and/or menu functionality.

Exemplary network and client apparatus for implementing the variousfacets of the disclosure are also described, as are businessmethodologies and an operation business “rules” engine (e.g., computerprogram).

Detailed Description of Exemplary Embodiments

Exemplary embodiments of the secondary content selective enforcementapparatus and methods of the present disclosure are now described indetail. While these exemplary embodiments are described in the contextof a hybrid fiber coax (HFC) cable architecture having a multiplesystems operator (MSO), digital networking capability, and plurality ofclient devices/CPE, the general principles and advantages of thedisclosure may be extended to other types of networks and architectures,whether broadband, narrowband, wired or wireless, content or data, orotherwise. Hence, the following description is merely exemplary innature. For example, the disclosure may be practiced over afiber-to-the-home (FTTH) or fiber-to-the-curb (FTTC) system, or oversatellite or millimeter wave-based networks having two-way capabilitiessimilar to today's digital cable HFC networks.

It will also be appreciated that while described generally in thecontext of a network providing service to a customer or consumer (i.e.,residential) end user domain, the present disclosure may be readilyadapted to other types of environments including, e.g.,commercial/enterprise, and government/military applications. Myriadother applications are possible.

Also, while certain aspects are described primarily in the context ofthe well known IP or Internet Protocol (described in, inter alia, RFC791 and 2460), it will be appreciated that the present disclosure mayutilize other types of protocols (and in fact bearer networks to includeother internets and intranets) to implement the described functionality.

Bearer Network Architecture

FIG. 1 illustrates a typical content distribution network configurationwith which the apparatus and methods of the present disclosure may beused. The various components of the network 100 include (i) one or moredata and application origination points 102; (ii) one or more contentsources 103, (iii) one or more application distribution servers 104;(iv) one or more VoD servers 105, and (v) consumer premises equipment(CPE) 106. The distribution server(s) 104, VoD servers 105 and CPE(s)106 are connected via a bearer (e.g., HFC) network 101. A simplearchitecture comprising one of each of the aforementioned components102, 104, 105, 106 is shown in FIG. 1 for simplicity, although it willbe recognized that comparable architectures with multiple originationpoints, distribution servers, VoD servers, and/or CPE devices (as wellas different network topologies) may be utilized consistent with thedisclosure. For example, the headend architecture of FIG. 1a (describedin greater detail below) may be used.

The data/application origination point 102 comprises any medium thatallows data and/or applications (such as a VoD-based application, gamingapplication, or “Watch TV” application) to be transferred to adistribution server 104. This can include for example a third party datasource, application vendor website, CD-ROM, external network interface,mass storage device (e.g., RAID system), etc. Such transference may beautomatic, initiated upon the occurrence of one or more specified events(such as the receipt of a request packet or ACK), performed manually, oraccomplished in any number of other modes readily recognized by those ofordinary skill.

The application distribution server 104 comprises a computer systemwhere such applications can enter the network system. Distributionservers are well known in the networking arts, and accordingly notdescribed further herein.

The VoD server 105 comprises a computer system where on-demand contentcan be received from one or more of the aforementioned data sources 102and enter the network system. These servers may generate the contentlocally, or alternatively act as a gateway or intermediary from adistant source.

The CPE 106 includes any equipment in the “customers' premises” (orother locations, whether local or remote to the servers 104, 105) thatcan be accessed by a distribution server 104 or VOD server 105.

Referring now to FIG. 1a , one exemplary embodiment of headendarchitecture useful with the present disclosure is described. As shownin FIG. 1a , the headend architecture 150 comprises typical headendcomponents and services including billing module 152, subscribermanagement system (SMS) and CPE configuration management module 154,cable-modem termination system (CMTS) and OOB system 156, as well asLAN(s) 158, 160 placing the various components in data communicationwith one another. It will be appreciated that while a bar or bus LANtopology is illustrated, any number of other arrangements as previouslyreferenced (e.g., ring, star, etc.) may be used consistent with thedisclosure. It will also be appreciated that the headend configurationdepicted in FIG. 1a is high-level, conceptual architecture and that eachMSO may have multiple headends deployed using custom architectures.

The architecture 150 of FIG. 1a further includes amultiplexer/encrypter/modulator (MEM) 162 coupled to the HFC network 101adapted to “condition” content for transmission over the network. Thedistribution servers 164 are coupled to the LAN 160, which providesaccess to the MEM 162 and network 101 via one or more file servers 170.The VoD servers 105 are coupled to the LAN 160 as well, although otherarchitectures may be employed (such as for example where the VoD serversare associated with a core switching device such as an 802.3z GigabitEthernet device). As previously described, information is carried acrossmultiple channels. Thus, the headend must be adapted to acquire theinformation for the carried channels from various sources. Typically,the channels being delivered from the headend 150 to the CPE 106(“downstream”) are multiplexed together in the headend and sent toneighborhood hubs (FIG. 1b ) via a variety of interposed networkcomponents.

Content (e.g., audio, video, data, applications, etc.) is provided ineach downstream (in-band) channel associated with the relevant servicegroup. To communicate with the headend or intermediary node (e.g., hubserver), the CPE 106 may use the out-of-band (OOB) or DOCSIS channelsand associated protocols. The OCAP 1.0, 2.0, 3.0 (and subsequent)specification provides for exemplary networking protocols bothdownstream and upstream, although the disclosure is in no way limited tothese approaches.

As shown in FIG. 1b , the network 101 of FIGS. 1 and 1 a comprises afiber/coax arrangement wherein the output of the MEM 162 of FIG. 1a istransferred to the optical domain (such as via an optical transceiver177 at the headend or further downstream). The optical domain signalsare then distributed to a fiber node 178, which further distributes thesignals over a distribution network 180 to a plurality of localservicing nodes 182. This provides an effective 1:N expansion of thenetwork at the local service end.

“Switched” Networks

FIG. 1c illustrates an exemplary “switched” network architecture alsouseful with the present disclosure. Switching architectures allowimproved efficiency of bandwidth use for ordinary digital broadcastprograms. Ideally, the subscriber will be unaware of any differencebetween programs delivered using a switched network and ordinarystreaming broadcast delivery.

FIG. 1c shows the implementation details of one exemplary embodiment ofthis broadcast switched network architecture. Specifically, the headend150 contains switched broadcast control and media path functions 190,192; these element cooperating to control and feed, respectively,downstream or edge switching devices 194 at the hub site which are usedto selectively switch broadcast streams to various service groups. A BSAserver 196 is also typically disposed at the hub site, and implementsfunctions related to switching and bandwidth conservation (inconjunction with a management entity 198 disposed at the headend). Anoptical transport ring 197 is utilized to distribute the densewave-division multiplexed (DWDM) optical signals to each hub in anefficient fashion.

-   -   Co-owned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/956,688 filed Sep.        20, 2001 entitled “Technique for Effectively Providing Program        Material in a Cable Television System”, and issued as U.S. Pat.        No. 8,713,623 on Apr. 29, 2014, incorporated herein by reference        in its entirety, describes one exemplary broadcast switched        digital architecture useful with the present disclosure,        although it will be recognized by those of ordinary skill that        other approaches and architectures may be substituted.

In addition to “broadcast” content (e.g., video programming), thesystems of FIGS. 1a-1c can also deliver Internet data services using theInternet protocol (IP), although other protocols and transportmechanisms of the type well known in the digital communication art maybe substituted. One exemplary delivery paradigm comprises deliveringMPEG-based video content (e.g., “IPTV” or the like), with the videotransported to user PCs (or IP-based STBs) over the aforementionedDOCSIS channels comprising MPEG (or other video codec such as H.264 orAVC) over IP over MPEG. That is, the higher layer MPEG- or other encodedcontent is encapsulated using an IP protocol, which then utilizes anMPEG packetization of the type well known in the art for delivery overthe RF channels. In this fashion, a parallel delivery mode to the normalbroadcast delivery exists; i.e., delivery of video content both overtraditional downstream QAMs to the tuner of the user's STB or otherreceiver device for viewing on the television, and also as packetized IPdata over the DOCSIS QAMs to the user's PC or other IP-enabled devicevia the user's cable or other modem.

Referring again to FIG. 1c , the IP packets associated with Internetservices are received by edge switch 194, and forwarded to the cablemodem termination system (CMTS) 199. The CMTS examines the packets, andforwards packets intended for the local network to the edge switch 194.Other packets are discarded or routed to another component. The edgeswitch 194 forwards the packets receive from the CMTS 199 to the QAMmodulator 189, which transmits the packets on one or more physical(QAM-modulated RF) channels to the CPEs (or CD). The IP packets aretypically transmitted on RF channels that are different than the RFchannels used for the broadcast video and audio programming, althoughthis is not a requirement. The CPE 106 are each configured to monitorthe particular assigned RF channel (such as via a port or socketID/address, or other such mechanism) for IP packets intended for thesubscriber premises/address that they serve.

Packet-Optimized Architectures

-   -   While the foregoing network architectures described herein can        (and in fact do) carry packetized content (e.g., IP over MPEG        for high-speed data or Internet TV, MPEG2 packet content over        QAM for MPTS, etc.), they are often not optimized for such        delivery. Hence, in accordance with another embodiment of the        present disclosure, a “packet optimized” delivery network is        used for carriage of the packet content (e.g., IPTV content)        when the request issues from an MSO network (see discussion of        FIG. 2a below). FIG. 1c illustrates one exemplary implementation        of such a network, in the context of an IMS (IP Multimedia        Subsystem) network with common control plane and service        delivery platform (SDP), as described in U.S. Provisional Patent        Application Ser. No. 61/256,903 entitled “METHODS AND APPARATUS        FOR PACKETIZED CONTENT DELIVERY OVER A CONTENT DELIVERY        NETWORK”, incorporated herein. Such a network provides        significant enhancements in terms of common control of different        services, implementation and management of content delivery        sessions according to unicast or multicast models,        quality-of-service (QoS) for IP-packetized content streams,        etc.; however, it is appreciated that the various features of        the present disclosure are in no way limited to any of the        foregoing architectures.        Selective Enforcement Network Architecture

Referring now to FIG. 2, one embodiment of the network architecturespecifically implementing the selective advertisement/promotionalenforcement functions of the invention is shown and described. Thesystem 200 of FIG. 2 is in the present embodiment disposed substantiallyat one or more cable or satellite network headends or distributionfacilities, although it will be recognized that this is in no way arequirement, and in fact the components may be distributed among variousdifferent physical locations (and connected via network for example) asdesired. See for example the alternate premises-based embodimentsdescribed infra with respect to FIG. 3. Moreover, different cable orsatellite or other system headends may share components between them,and/or have multiple ones of components installed for e.g.,redundancy/failover protection, different tasking or service, etc.

It is also envisaged that the methods and apparatus described herein maybe implemented in the context of unmanaged networks, such as, e.g., theInternet. For instance, a cloud-based media streaming server mayselectively restrict or enable its “trick mode” functions with respectto the streamed content based on “cookies” passed back up to thestreaming server regarding the user's viewing of certain secondarycontent.

-   -   As shown in FIG. 2, the network architecture 200 includes a        network server device 202 with associated database 204, content        encoding apparatus 207, and network content storage and delivery        service 208 with primary and secondary content sources or stores        210, 209. In the illustrated embodiment, the content delivery        service 208 comprises one of a network DVR, “Look Back”, or        “Start Over” service of the type previously referenced herein,        such as that described in co-owned U.S. patent application Ser.        No. 10/913,064 filed on Aug. 6, 2004 and entitled “TECHNIQUE FOR        DELIVERING PROGRAMMING CONTENT BASED ON A MODIFIED NETWORK        PERSONAL VIDEO RECORDER SERVICE”, or U.S. Pat. No. 7,457,520        issued Nov. 25, 2008 and entitled “TECHNIQUE FOR PROVIDING A        VIRTUAL DIGITAL VIDEO RECORDER SERVICE THROUGH A COMMUNICATIONS        NETWORK”, each of the foregoing incorporated herein by reference        in its entirety, although it will be appreciated that other        types of services may be used consistent with the disclosure        (including for example video-on-demand (VoD) or other on-demand        delivery paradigms such as pay-per-view (PPV)). For instance,        the selective enforcement function can be applied to previews        associated with VoD or PPV movies; e.g., if the user/CPE        requesting the movie has already seen a given preview (such as        via a previous VoD or PPV order), they can FF or skip over it.

In the foregoing delivery models, users are enabled to utilize one ormore trick mode functions such as STOP, FF, REW, PAUSE, PLAY, etc. aspart of the content delivery. In one typical implementation, thecommands sent from the user (e.g., via their remote control) aretransferred upstream to the network server delivering the content, theserver then either implementing the desired function, or in the case ofuse restrictions, not implementing the function (e.g., FF foradvertisements entrained within network DVR 210 or Look Back content).Hence, the illustrated architecture 200 of FIG. 2 builds upon andmodifies this extant trick mode logic, specifically by determiningwhether to enable certain functions based on prior viewing.Specifically, the server device 202 receives “cookie” information fromthe relevant CPE 206 (as discussed in greater detail below) regardingviewing of secondary content, and updates the relevant portions of thedatabase 204 to in effect remember what secondary content has beenwatched by what CPE (and when).

To implement this capability, the content encoder 207 of thearchitecture 200 encodes the secondary content inserted from a contentsource or store 209 present in the program streams (which in oneembodiment comprise multiplexed ATSC MPEG-2 transport streams, or MPTS)using, e.g., a digital watermark disposed in the audio track of thesecondary content. Hence, the delivered multiplexed transport stream maycarry several different secondary content elements, each of which may beencoded with a distinct watermark to uniquely identify the element(and/or one or more attributes associated with the element).

-   -   An advertising management subsystem or AMS (not shown) selects        individual ones of a plurality of secondary content for        insertion into individual ones of the program streams from the        secondary content store 209. The AMS may, in one embodiment, be        adapted to comply with the requirements set forth in the Society        of Cable Telecommunications Engineers SCTE 130-1 and SCTE 130-3        Digital Program Insertion-Advertising Systems Interfaces        standards, which are incorporated herein by reference in their        entirety. Advantageously, the methods and apparatus of the        present disclosure can be used with any number of different        advertising insertion or splicer architectures, whether analog,        digital or hybrid in nature. See, for example, co-owned U.S.        patent application Ser. No. 10/662,776 filed Sep. 15, 2003        entitled “SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR ADVERTISEMENT DELIVERY WITHIN A        VIDEO TIME SHIFTING ARCHITECTURE”, issued as U.S. Pat. No.        8,214,256 on Jul. 3, 2012, which is incorporated by reference        herein in its entirety, for exemplary advertising insertion and        splicer apparatus and methods in the context of, e.g., networked        digital video recorder (nDVR) or VoD delivery paradigms.

When a given requesting premises receives the MPTS, its CPE 206 uses aPID filter or other comparable mechanism to identify the individualprogram stream of interest, and extract the packets associated with thatstream for reassembly of the stream by the CPE/rendering device.Associated with the secondary content elements are the watermarked audiotracks. An algorithm 215 running on the CPE (such as those used todetect the exemplary NMR watermarks discussed below) evaluate the audiotrack(s) of the extracted program stream (e.g., a cloud-stored versionof a linear broadcast channel having advertisements) to find thewatermarks and hence identify the advertisement(s).

In one implementation, all broadcast and MSO network linear programs andadvertisements are encoded with NAVE audio watermarks. These audiowatermarks are retained when a real time acquisition is performed by theMSO (as well as when the user records the content to a DVR). Audiowatermarking is in one variant applied before the content is received atthe MSO headend(s) for, inter alia, network advertisements; it isperformed at the programmer's origination site. However, it will berecognized that the watermarking can be applied at other locations,including by the MSO.

Once the watermarks have been detected, information relating to them istransmitted upstream to the server device 202. As discussed subsequentlyherein with respect to FIG. 5, various embodiments of the disclosurewill have the CPE 206 and server 202 perform various different functionsto effectuate the ultimate selective enablement function previouslydescribed. For instance, in one configuration, the CPE may merely passthe raw watermark data to the server 202 for further analysis andidentification (and search of the database 204). In this case, thedatabase 204 is in one variant further configured to include a listingor library of watermark data so as to enable the server 202 to uniquelyidentify the advertisement via the received watermark data. In anothervariant, the database 204 merely contains a library of watermarks; theserver 202 searches the watermarks for the CPE of interest (asdetermined by, e.g., a MAC or IP address, account ID, or other indiciaof the CPE) for a bit-wise match for the received watermark, and if amatch is found in the database for that CPE, a signal or message is sentto the stream control module 212 (or other cognizant entity) of thedelivery service 208 to enable the FF or “skip” functions.

In one exemplary embodiment, the database 204 associated with thenetwork device 202 is configured to store on the order of 1E07 to 1E08viewing events at any given time, although this number is merelyillustrative. For example, assuming an average of 250 hours of viewingper premises/household per month, and approximately 26 impressions perhour per premises, a maximum number of 6500 total impressions perpremises per month is obtained. When multiplied by the number ofpremises served or monitored by a given network device 202 and database204, which for example might be 100,000, a number of roughly 6.5E07 (65million) events per month per server is obtained, which is well withinextant data storage and processing capacity.

In one implementation, an approach akin to the well-known “cookie” isutilized for obtaining the desired viewing data from the varioussubscribers of the network. As a brief aside, a cookie (also known as anHTTP or HTTPS cookie, web cookie, or browser cookie) is an arbitrarypiece of textual data used for instance for an origin website or serverto send state information (i.e., information relating to previousevents, akin to a memory) to a user's browser, and/or for that browserto return state information to the origin site/server. The stateinformation can be used for any number of purposes including withoutlimitation authentication, identification of a user/user session, userpreferences, etc. Without cookies, each retrieval of a Web page orcomponent of a Web page is an isolated event effectively unrelated toall other interactions with the pages of the same site. Cookies may alsobe set via other means, such as, e.g., via a script in a language (e.g.,JavaScript).

Hence, in the exemplary implementation, the network side device 202exchanges one or more cookies with each CPE 206, so as to inter aliaobtain state information as to the viewed secondary content. The stateinformation is generated in one embodiment by an application processrunning on each of the CPE which extracts the audio watermark data(discussed in greater detail below) and creates the necessary datastructures for transmission back to the network device 202. Thistransmission may take on any number of forms/protocols (e.g., renderedin HTTP/HTTPS, Javascript, etc.), or may even use extant signalingmessages or protocols within the network that have been “piggybacked” orrepurposed for such transmissions. The operation and function of theforegoing architecture and components is merely one possiblearchitecture for implementing the inventive functionality; see forinstance the alternative architecture of FIG. 3 discussed infra.Moreover, various of the subsystems and components shown in FIG. 2 canbe combined with others, or functions performed thereby distributedacross different functional (e.g., hardware or software) entitiesalready within the content delivery network.

Watermarking

The Nielsen Audio Video Encoder (NAVE) is a system capable of insertingNielsen Media Research proprietary NAVE source identificationwatermarking directly into the audio portion of compressed digital ATSCtransport streams prior to broadcast. NAVE devices can simultaneouslyinsert watermarking data on multiple independent digital televisionprograms being broadcast whether they are standard definition (SDTV) orhigh definition (HDTV).

Encoding of television signals such as in the Nielsen system is used foraudience measurement; e.g., to accurately identify televisiondistributors (including broadcast stations or cable networks). TheNielsen Media approach installs meter devices at user premises beingmonitored to identify stations and networks by reading theaforementioned watermarks or other codes inserted into the televisionsignal at the distribution source through the NAVE unit. By encodingcontent with a NAVE unit, ratings data for programming can be provided,whether it is received in a digital, analog, or combined viewingenvironment.

In one implementation, the installed meter device detects and extractsthe codes (watermarks) contained in content signals that are deliveredto the premises. These watermarks can be matched to a “library” toidentify the content.

If any station's NAVE encoder is interrupted, the meter device installedin Nielsen sample premises collects and store passive signatures for allnon-encoded programming viewed. These signatures are downloaded eachnight to Nielsen's operations center. To identify viewing, the passivesignatures collected from the meter device in the premises are matchedagainst the signatures in the library.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,901,606 to Wright, et al. entitled “Method and apparatusfor detecting time-compressed broadcast content”, and U.S. Pat. No.6,272,176 to Srinivasan entitled “Broadcast encoding system and method”,each of the foregoing incorporated herein by reference in its entirety,describe various aspects of the exemplary NAVE encoder and relatedtechniques, which can be used in one embodiment to insert audioencodings or watermarking. Various extant commercial devices which canperform such encoding also exist, including for example the Wegener NAVEIIc™ device, or that manufactured by Ross Video (Norpak), which supportthe ability to code pre-compressed MPEG-2 transport streams. Forexample, the Wegener NAVE IIc™ encoder inserts NMR (Nielsen MediaResearch) audio watermarking data into MPEG-2 Multi-Program TransportStreams compliant with the ATSC standard(s).

While the exemplary embodiments described herein are discussed asutilizing audio watermarking or code insertion, it will be appreciatedthat the present disclosure is in no way so limited, and in fact othermechanisms for inserting codes or information which can be identified bya receiving or rendering device can be used consistent with the presentdisclosure, including without limitation: (i) video watermarking; (ii)out-of-band or side-band encoding; (iii) so called “hint tracks” such asthose specified in the ISO base media file format set forth in ISO/IEC14496-12 (MPEG-4 Part 12), which is incorporated herein by reference inits entirety, or (iv) audio content recognition, such as that used byservices such as e.g., Shazam®.

In another embodiment, the commercially available Rentrak VoD-basedtracking solutions (e.g., OnDemand Essentials) can be utilizedconsistent with the present disclosure to provide, inter alia, trackingof activity or content.

Premises-Centric Embodiments

Referring now to FIG. 3, another embodiment of the selective enforcementfunctional architecture is shown and described. In this embodiment, thearchitecture 300 leverages an application 315 and watermark database 304retained on the CPE 306 to determine whether a given function (e.g.,trick mode) should be enabled. Hence, in this approach, the decision onwhether to enable/disable trick mode or other such functionality for agiven user/CPE is decentralized and given to each individual CPE, asopposed to being made by a centralized server 202 such as in thearchitecture 200 of FIG. 2. The logic within the exemplary CPE 306 is inone implementation configured to: (i) extract every watermarkencountered as part of the received and viewed media streams, (ii)determine if the extracted watermark is already in the database, and(iii) store the extracted watermark in the database 304 if not alreadypresent, such as for a given period of time (e.g., one month, on a FIFOor similar basis). If the extracted watermark is not found in thedatabase, any of the designated trick mode commands destined for thenetwork content server are modified or accompanied by a “disable”signal, or alternatively the CPE 306 merely blocks the signal. If thewatermark is found (indicating that the user has seen the watermarkedcontent previously within the prescribed FIFO period), then the functionoperates normally; i.e., is enabled.

The architecture 300 of FIG. 3 has the advantage of, inter alia, havingeach CPE retain data only for itself (or its connected devices), thereby(i) obviating upstream communications of watermark data, and (ii)ostensibly minimizing processing overhead and latency for watermarksearching, since the database to be searched is much smaller (by afactor of 100,000) or so, or at very least must be indexed on a per-CPEor per-account basis.

Moreover, the architecture 300 of FIG. 3 eliminates the network server202 of FIG. 2, since all selective enforcement logic is effectivelycontained within the CPE 306. It also obviates having to send CPE- oruser-specific information regarding user habits or viewing to thenetwork, thereby providing a degree of privacy for the user.

However, it also requires a “thicker” CPE, and may be prone tosurreptitious manipulation by a user (e.g., to permanently enable alltrick mode functions). Compilation of data for network-wide analysis orthe like is also frustrated.

Notwithstanding, it will be appreciated that various hybridizations ofthe embodiments of FIGS. 2 and 3 may be utilized consistent with thedisclosure; e.g., the architecture 300 of FIG. 3 may also have theserver 202 of FIG. 2, such as for the receipt of data from each CPE for,e.g., the aforementioned network-wide analysis, targeted advertisinginsertion functions, implementation of rules-engine policies (discussedbelow), etc.

Methods

Referring now to FIG. 4, one embodiment of a generalized methodology 400of selective enforcement of functions for content distribution isdescribed. This embodiment is geared towards the architecture 200 ofFIG. 2 above.

As shown, the method first includes receiving one or more programstreams at a user premises per step 402. For example an MPTS is receivedvia the HFC network of FIG. 1, or a packet stream is received viaanother bearer (e.g., a TCP/IP layer stream over a bearer such as anoptical fiber or wireless link).

Per step 404, the stream is examined, and any watermarking or otherrelevant coding associated with secondary content contained therein isidentified. For instance, in one variant, the aforementioned exemplaryNAVE watermarking is used within audio tracks associated with thereceived content.

Per step 406, the identified watermarks or codes are extracted.

Per step 408, the extracted watermarks or codes are optionally formatted(such as to include a CPE ID, such as a MAC or IP address, user accountdata, etc.) and transmitted upstream (e.g., via OOB channel or otherbearer) to the network server 202.

Per step 410, the watermarks are processed as required by the server202, and the database 204 accessed to identify any instances of priorviewing by the designated CPE of that content. In one variant, theserver 202 uses the watermark to affirmatively identify the associatedsecondary content (e.g., by an advertisement ID or the like), and thensearch the database 204 based on that ID. Alternatively, a “brute force”search of the watermark bit-stream (e.g., for a bit-wise match) isperformed. Many other variants of identifying the watermark within thedatabase will be recognized by those of ordinary skill given the presentdisclosure.

Per step 412, based on the outcome of the search of step 410, thedesignated functionality (e.g., FF or skip) is either enabled (step414), or disabled (step 416).

Referring now to FIG. 5, one embodiment of a generalized methodology 500of selective enforcement of functions for content distribution isdescribed. This embodiment is geared towards the architecture 300 ofFIG. 3 above (i.e., is premises-centric).

As shown, the method first includes receiving one or more programstreams at a user premises per step 502. Again, an MPTS is received viathe HFC network of FIG. 1, or a packet stream is received via anotherbearer (e.g., a TCP/IP layer stream over a bearer such as an opticalfiber or wireless link).

Per step 504, the stream is examined, and any watermarking or otherrelevant coding associated with secondary content contained therein isidentified. For instance, in one variant, the aforementioned exemplaryNAVE watermarking is used within audio tracks associated with thereceived content.

Per step 506, the identified watermarks or codes are extracted.

Per step 508, the extracted watermarks or codes are optionally processed(such as to facilitate their subsequent search within the local database304), and the database 304 is accessed to identify any instances ofprior viewing by the designated CPE of that content. As above, in onevariant, the CPE 306 uses the watermark to affirmatively identify theassociated secondary content (e.g., by an advertisement ID or the like),and then search the database 304 based on that ID. Alternatively, a“brute force” search of the watermark bit-stream (e.g., for a bit-wisematch) is performed. Many other variants of identifying the watermarkwithin the database will be recognized by those of ordinary skill giventhe present disclosure.

Per step 510, based on the outcome of the search of step 508, thedesignated functionality (e.g., FF or skip) is either enabled (step512), or disabled (step 514). For instance, in one implementation, astate variable is maintained with the CPE 306, such that any subsequenttrick mode commands initiated by the user check the state variable(e.g., “go/no-go”) as to whether the function will be allowed.

Other Variants

In another embodiment, information relating to the context of anadvertisement or promotion is used to determine eligibility forselective enablement. For instance, in one variant, an advertisementhaving a context which is sufficiently related to that of one alreadyviewed is made eligible for the FF or skip functions. Other variationsof this general approach are recognized as well, including e.g.,correlation of two advertisements from the same advertiser/entity,correlation of two advertisements for similar goods or services, etc.

In another embodiment, the temporal component of a user's activity isevaluated to identify activity of interest. For example, in one variant,the “freshness” of a viewer's previous view of an advertisement isevaluated, such as by calculating the time between when theadvertisement was last viewed and the present time. If a prescribedcriterion (e.g., within the last month) is met or exceeded, theaforementioned selective enablement is not conducted, and the user mustview the advertisement.

In another embodiment, an advertiser may use a series of advertisingspots to create a “story” (i.e., the advertisements build off oneanother to create a linked chain of events which spans the entirety ofthe advertisements). Using, e.g., cookies or other similar mechanism, aparticular user's position within the story is tracked. In this manner,the system may automatically provide the advertisements in sequentialorder to the user. The user is thus more engaged and interested in theadvertisement, as he is able to recollect and enjoy the overall story.Alternatively, the user may be required to indicate to the system tomove from one “episode” to another within the advertisement series. Therequirement that the user affirmatively select where he is within theadvertisement series results in an ability of the system to obtainhighly specific information regarding the user's past and currentinteraction with the advertisement series.

In an additional variant, the aforementioned advertisement series istied across various networks. In other words, a user may pick up on anext “episode” in the advertisement series (either manually orautomatically) despite the network or device on which the user accessescontent. This may be accomplished via an identification or determinationof the identity of the user, such as by authenticating the user (e.g.,by a password and log-in information).

Another embodiment includes enabling a user to use a remote control orother mechanism to skip an advertisement if the user has at someprevious time viewed the advertisement. A Nielsen view may then beassigned to the advertisement and one or more alternative advertisementsmay be provided. In one variant, different offers or “closers” may beprovided to the user if it is noted that he has performed multipleadvertisement skips. The advertisement skips may be identified orgrouped based on, e.g., whether the user is consistently skipping thesame advertisement, the same genre of advertisement, etc.

In another variant, the existence of changes to the advertisement in theintervening time period are evaluated. For example, if the previousadvertisement that was viewed by a given subscriber relates to a givenproduct or service, and that advertisement (or the product/service) hasbeen updated in the interim, then even though the user had viewed theprior version of the ad, it must again be viewed. Varying approaches forcalculating “proximity” of two advertisements will be recognized bythose of ordinary skill given the present disclosure, including withoutlimitation: (i) context-based; (ii) temporal; (iii) changes in version,etc.; (iv) common advertiser; (v) common product/service, and so forth.

It will also be recognized that the same advertisement may carrydifferent watermarking when broadcast or transmitted at different times.Accordingly, the present disclosure contemplates variants where therelevant database of watermarks is cross-correlated or linked, such thatsearching on a first watermark associated with an advertisement willalso retrieve or identify a second watermark, akin to a single personhaving two names.

In yet another embodiment, the user is provided the ability to swap orexchange an advertisement for another. For instance, in one variant, anadvertisement of equal duration is swapped in (or is otherwise residentin the program stream) such that the user can skip the firstadvertisement in favor of the second one.

In another aspect of the disclosure, new “trick modes” are disclosed.One such trick mode is an “auto-skip” mode, which when enabled,automatically skips the program stream from the extant viewing point tothe end of a secondary content element that has been enabled. In onevariant, the auto-skip if from the extant viewing point to a pointwithin the secondary content which has not been viewed (e.g., where asubscriber had only viewed a portion of an advertisement, the skip wouldtake the user to the remaining portion not previously viewed).

Another trick mode disclosed herein is the “swap” mode, which aspreviously described, allows the user with one touch to exchange a givenadvertisement for another one.

In another aspect of the disclosure, the user activity related to use ofthe FF, skip, swap, or other such functions is evaluated and used as abasis for charging an advertiser for placement of an advertisement. Forinstance, in one embodiment, the user skipping over an advertisementpreviously viewed is counted as an “impression credit” for theadvertiser, and hence the fee or other consideration charged theadvertiser is adjusted based thereon. While it is often difficult totell whether a given user actually watched a given advertisement (i.e.,were they talking on the phone, away from the TV, mentally engaged,asleep, etc.), a user who affirmatively skips or swaps an advertisementis definitely known not to have viewed the advertisement (or at leastthe portion occurring after the skip/swap), and hence this informationcan be used by the network operator or advertiser.

In another embodiment, the skip or swap functions are invoked for anentire program stream or segment. For instance, in one variant, the userhas requested playback of cloud-stored primary content such as afootball game (which lasts several hours), and all the advertisementsqueued up for that entire duration are evaluated for priorviewing/enablement. If all the advertisements queued have beenpreviously viewed by that user, they are removed from the stream suchthat the user receives effectively continuous primary content with nointerruptions (although the programmer/operator may selectively insertother material if desired). Alternatively, the already viewedadvertisements can each be replaced for other (unseen) advertisements orpromotions.

In another embodiment, the user is given the opportunity to “fuse” datafrom multiple sources or devices together on their CPE (or anotherplatform, such as their mobile wireless tablet computer) relating tosecondary content they have viewed. For example, in one implementation,advertisements viewed by the user while watching television or contenton their tablet are identified, and information relating thereto storedon the tablet. When the tablet comes in range of a wireless node incommunication with the user's CPE (e.g., the user's Wi-Fi AP, or oneindigenous to the CPE itself), the mobile device downloads the storeddata to the CPE, the latter of which uses this data to populate/updateits own internal database. Hence, the user will not be presented (or canskip or FF through) advertisements on their premises rendering device(e.g., TV) that they have previously viewed on another platform. In someimplementations, the data can be pushed to the CPE (e.g., via WAP 2.0push or the like), or alternatively to a network server, and the CPE canperiodically or situationally download the pushed data from the serverso as to maintain its database updated.

In another embodiment, a given advertisement is selectively replacedwith a different (e.g., shorter) version thereof based on the viewer'sprior history or activity. In one such variant, the shorter version is a“micro” or mini-ad, such as a 1-5 second spot which is intended tobriefly get the user's attention, but which is completed so rapidly thatthe user need not take any action. For instance, if a viewer hadpreviously watched a full-length advertisement for Coca Cola™ (e.g.,30-seconds long), the program stream would be amended to include a3-second “Thirsty? Drink Coke!” spot, reminding the user of theproduct/service associated with the full-length ad. The spot version mayconceivably be so short as to barely be perceptible to the user; e.g.,flashing a picture of a can of Coke™, somewhat akin to prior artsubliminal advertising, yet longer in duration.

The foregoing shorter advertisement version replacement may be furtheremployed when a viewer selects a fast-forward or skip option. In otherwords, when the viewer enters a command to skip or fast-forward anadvertisement, the original advertisement is replaced with apre-recorded alternative (i.e., a short version advertisement). Prior tobroadcast, the advertiser provides a plurality of advertisements in fulllength as well as in shortened form. In the above embodiment, thefull-length advertisement is delivered to the user; then, upon selectionof the fast-forward command, the full-length version is swapped for theshorter version. The previously referenced delivery mechanisms(discussed above with respect to FIGS. 1-1 d) may be utilized fordelivery of each of the full-length and shortened advertisementversions.

In one alternate implementation, both the full-length and spotadvertisements are present in the program stream as delivered to theuser (e.g., in sequence with one another); the logic in the user's CPEmerely chooses which version to render (and hence skip the non-renderedversion).

In yet another embodiment, a user is enabled to “thumbnail”advertisements or promotions that they have already seen, such as usinga small window (e.g., akin to PIP) generated on the user's display.Hence, the user can watch the primary content in parallel with the ad,with little disruption of the advertisement running in the window.

In a further variant, the user can be enabled to “shuffle” theadvertisement placement or order. For example, in the case of theforegoing exemplary football game, the user may want to view all of thepreviously unviewed advertisements in the program stream for the game atthe beginning, or at half time, or after the first quarter, etc. Thisgives the user the ability to effectively avoid watching advertisementsin some cases, such as where the game is boring or one-sided, and theuser does not desire to watch the second half. By placing all of theadvertisements at halftime of such a game, the user has not expended anytime watching the advertisements they would have otherwise watched,since they all have been delayed until halftime.

In one such implementation, a user's mobile device (e.g., tabletcomputer) is used as the rendering device, and the touch-screen input isused to render thumbnails of the advertisements during the programstream. The user then merely drags the advertisements with their fingerto the place they wish to view them within the program stream.

The network operator or advertiser(s) may obviously impose restrictionson the foregoing; e.g., so as to avoid users moving all advertisementsto the very end of the program stream. However, such activity could bepermitted for example in cases where the user had already viewed theadvertisement.

In another embodiment, users traversing a program stream (such e.g., asa VoD or Start Over or Look Back stream) are presented with a menu orother logical construct (e.g., dynamically generated icons or otherinteractive mechanisms) when reaching an advertisement, and thetraversal is suspended until the user chooses a logical branch for thegiven advertisement. For example, in one implementation, usersfast-forwarding (FF) through Start Over content provided by a networkoperator are presented with an on-screen menu upon encountering an SCTE35 cue or other embedded marker within the stream, the menu giving theuser a plurality of options, such as, e.g.: a) watching theadvertisement; b) affirmatively skipping all or a portion of theadvertisement; c) saving the advertisement for later viewing; d) markingthe advertisement as a “favorite” or otherwise denoting it as belongingto a particular category of relevance to the user (e.g., “most obnoxiousads”, “car ads” etc.); and/or e) seeing an expanded or related contentsegment (e.g., seeing a full trailer for an advertisement for a movie,or trailers for movies of similar genre, director, actors, etc.). Hence,each of the foregoing represent a different logical “branch” which theuser must take in order to dispense with the advertisement and continuetheir traversal of the program stream.

It will accordingly be appreciated that the different logical branchesmay produce a different temporal aspects or timelines, and hence requireadjustment by the network-based delivery mechanism. For example, a useraffirmatively skipping an advertisement will in effect shorten theprogram stream by being allowed to skip over the advertisement.Similarly, a user requesting a full movie trailer will lengthen thestream. Saving an advertisement for later will require the advertisementto be inserted at some later time, whether within the same programstream or another (e.g., the disclosure contemplates that the “save forlater” and in fact other options may transfer between program streamsand in fact modalities, such as for instance where an advertisementsaved for later in a Start Over session may be later viewed as part of aLook Back session). Accordingly, advertisement removal and insertion canin one embodiment be conducted “on the fly” using well knownadvertisement splicing techniques, such as for instance those describedin commonly owned U.S. Pat. No. 8,099,757 issued on Jan. 17, 2012 andentitled “Methods and apparatus for Revenue-Optimized Delivery ofContent In a Network”, which is incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety.

The foregoing menu functionality may also be utilized consistent with amechanism whereby the user need not provide input to the menu orrespond. For example, in one variant, a user's lack of input orinteraction with the menu can be used as a basis for further action,which may include for instance playing the advertisement that generatedthe menu, or swapping out the advertisement for another that may be moregermane or of greater interest to the user, such as based ondemographics, pyschographics, historical behavior, explicit userpreferences, etc. In one implementation, the foregoing functionality isassociated with a timeout period, which may be statically or dynamicallyimposed. As one example of the latter, a user's historical activity withrespect to advertisements and the menu is evaluated for statisticalparameters that can be used as a basis for speculation on the user'sfuture behavior. For example, a user who has not interacted with thelast five (5) advertisement menus while in FF mode can be speculated tohave a low probability of interaction on the next instance. Likewise, auser who frequently interacts with certain functions can be speculatedto have a higher likelihood of such interaction in the future. To thisend, a histogram or other similar mechanism can be developed that can beused to guide functions such as population of the menu (seldom usedfunctions can be speculatively eliminated from the menu), thefunctionality of the individual functions on the menu (e.g., timeoutscan be specified or set at different values for functions that are usedmore or less frequently, or a broader scope of submenu options specifiedfor more frequently used functions).

It will be appreciated that the various options on the aforementionedmenu may be altered dynamically, such as, for example, based on: (i) thetype of mechanism by which the user is obtaining the content (e.g., VoD,Start Over, etc.); (ii) the identity of the user/user household,including any particular demographic, psychographic, or historicalcontexts or considerations associated therewith; (iii) operationalconsiderations or limitations of the delivery network (e.g., bandwidthlimitations); (iv) advertising content attributes (e.g., ratings; a fullmove trailer or adult-themed advertisement may be precluded by aparental control function for children due to its rating for instance;or a longer run-time advertisement may have different menu optionsassociated therewith as compared to a shorter one); (v) date and/or timeof day (e.g., more or less options or flexibility might be provided tousers during prime time versus late-night or early morning viewing);and/or (vi) the subscription level of the user (e.g., higher-levelsubscribers may be given more options or flexibility in use of theoptions). The foregoing dynamic menu logic may be implemented entirelyon the network side, by way of a local application or logic running onthe user's CPE, or some combination thereof. Accordingly, a given usermay see their menu options change literally from advertisement toadvertisement, and/or in a more progressive manner over time, dependingon the granularity and metric(s) selected by the MSO or advertiser forthe dynamic menu alteration function.

It will also be recognized that the various menu functions may not haveequal stature. For instance, certain options may provide the networkoperator enhanced revenue as compared to others (i.e., a useraffirmatively viewing an advertisement can be counted as an “impression”for purposes of billing an advertiser, whereas an affirmative skip bythe user is a definite non-impression). A “save for later” mighteventually mature into an impression, but is inchoate in this regard,since there is no guarantee that a user will ever watch it later (unlessit is enforced, as described elsewhere herein). Hence, certain optionsare clearly more desirable for different entities in a particularcircumstance than others. Accordingly, these various functions can beweighted or otherwise apportioned, such as among one or more users, oneor more programs, one or more advertising campaigns, etc. For instance,in one such implementation, a “credit” system is used, whereby a usercan accrue/deplete advertisement credits for various menu functionsselected. For example, in the foregoing context, an affirmative “view”selected on the menu accrues n number of credits for that user (or CPEor household, depending on the particular model selected). These creditsare saved in a “bank” for later use by the same user/CPE/household, suchas in the case where the user inserts an affirmative “skip” command, inwhich case n credits are subtracted. A “save for later” selection by theuser may accrue a lesser number of credits (e.g., n/2), since theimpression is inchoate as discussed supra; in one variant, the user isgiven the remaining n/2 credit when they actually view the savedadvertisement. Note that the credits may be tied to any basis the MSO oradvertiser desires, including impressions (discussed above), duration(e.g., longer ads correlate with more credit), timing (prime timeviewing of ads may accrue more credits than non-prime time). Moreover,the credits/debits may be applied across multiple differentadvertisers/campaigns, or restricted to one (e.g., such that eachdifferent campaign has its own user/CPE/household “bank account”).Credits/debits may be accrued on a user basis across multiple devices aswell; e.g., credits accrued on a user's premises CPE (e.g., DSTB) may beadded to those accrued on their mobile device for the same advertisercampaign. The disclosure also contemplates that users can trade creditsor give them away; e.g., to another family member or friend.

As another example of weighting or apportionment, certain functions ofthe menu may only be available at certain times or certain frequencieswith respect to others. For instance, the “affirmative watch” functionmight always be available irrespective of any other considerations orfactors, whereas the “skip” function may only be available at a reducedfrequency, or as a function of dynamic variables as discussed above(e.g., only during non-prime time).

Myriad other combinations and permutations of dynamic control and/orapportionment will be recognized by those of ordinary skill given thepresent disclosure, the foregoing being merely illustrative of thebroader principles of the disclosure.

It will further be appreciated that the foregoing menu functions can incertain implementations be combined, or multiple ones selected. Forinstance, the menu or other construct discussed above may be configuredsuch that the user can select multiple ones of the options, such as“watch now” and “save for later”. The menu may also be configured withsubmenus or other functional structures (e.g., icons, telescopingfeatures, hyperlinks, etc.) so as to provide more detailed or complexfunctions/options. For example, in the exemplary “save for later”function, the user might be given options to save for one hour later,one day later, one week later, next time they view the given channelassociated with the ad, etc.

In another embodiment, the skip or fast-forward command when employedduring an advertisement may cause display of the advertisement with areduced number of frames (for example half of the frames may bedropped). Alternatively, the frame rate may be increased, i.e., the rateat which each frame is displayed is increased or sped up. Theframe-adjusted advertisement is displayed to the viewer in addition tothe audio portion thereof. To ensure that the advertisement isunderstandable to the viewer, the audio portion may also be adjusted toaccount for the increased speed at which it is played. That is to say,the overall time needed to play a frame-adjusted advertisement isshortened as compared to a non-frame-adjusted advertisement. If theaudio is to be played alongside the frame-adjusted advertisement, itmust adjust its speed. It is well known, however, that audio played backat an increased speed causes the audio to be distorted and in some casesunintelligible to the listener. Therefore, mechanisms may be provided toadjust the audio to ensure that it is clear and understandable at theincreased speed. In one example, the audio portion may be played at theincreased speed, but may be dropped an octave (to make up for aso-called “chipmunk” effect). As another alternative, certain portionsof the audio (e.g., non-essential portions that are pre-marked, such asusing cues or metadata) may be selectively deleted.

The frame-adjusted advertisement may still be considered “viewed” by theviewer according to the previously discussed Nielsen standards. Inparticular, a custom version of the previously discussed NAVE audiowatermark may be created and applied to the rate-adjusted advertisement.When the rate-adjusted advertisement is viewed, the watermark isidentified and information relating thereto collected and/or transmittedsuch as to a headend entity and/or a NAVE unit. Alternatively, thewatermark itself need not be altered; rather, the NAVE unit or otherequipment may be configured to identify the watermark despite it beingpresented at an increased speed.

Information relating to whether the frame-adjusted advertisement hasbeen viewed may be utilized as discussed above. For example, theinformation may be utilized, e.g., to determine eligibility forselective enablement of various features, to track a user's positionwithin an advertisement story or series, to track a viewer'sadvertisement viewing history, to provide a mechanism for chargingadvertisers on a per-view basis, and/or to track “impression credits”.These and other example uses are discussed in greater detail above.

It is further recognized that the foregoing functionality, i.e., theability to cause a frame-adjusted advertisement and adjusted audio to bepresented upon selection of a skip or fast-forward command is associatedto advertising (secondary) content, and not programming (primary)content. In other words, during non-advertising portions of the program,the fast-forward or skip buttons work as usual (e.g., 2×, 4×, 8×, etc.with audio being dropped out). Hence, the present embodiment is furtherconfigured to identify, at the time of the skip or fast-forward request,whether the content being currently viewed is primary or secondarycontent. In one embodiment, this is accomplished by searching theprogram stream for SCTE 35 cues. If it is determined that the buttonpress follows an SCTE 35 cue tone indicating the start of anadvertisement, the foregoing mechanisms for frame adjusting andadjusting the audio of the advertisement are employed. Alternatively, ifthe button press follows an SCTE 35 cue tone indicating the end of anadvertisement, the foregoing mechanisms are not employed and traditionalfast-forward and skip mechanism are utilized.

In another embodiment, advertising and program content are separatedusing time coding enabled by the programmer prior to, or by a thirdparty after the airing of, program content.

Premises DVR-Based Embodiments

In addition to the foregoing network-based storage implementations(e.g., using nDVR), various aspects of the disclosure may be implementedat the user's premises using their own recording equipment (e.g.,premises DVR). In one such implementation, content is streamed over thenetwork to the user, the content including secondary content such asadvertisements or promotions. The user selects their DVR to record thestreamed content (and secondary content) generally as in the prior art.However, in this implementation, the advertisement skipping and/or menufunctionality discussed supra, are enabled on the user's CPE (e.g., onthe DVR itself) such that subsequent interaction with the recordedcontent is subject the advertisement skipping/menu functions.

For example, in one variant, the user records the primary and secondarycontent on his/her DVR (such as when they are away at work), and thenlater accesses the stored content (stream). As the user attempts tofast-forward through the secondary content, the logic resident on theCPE (e.g., DVR, gateway, DSTB, or other CPE in communication therewith)either accesses either local or remote data relating the user's (or thatCPE's) prior interaction or viewing with that particular secondarycontent, or alternatively their advertisement “credit” status. Thesecondary content may be identified using the NAVE approach discussedabove, or alternatively via other means (such as an identifier or codeembedded in the audio or video portion of the secondary content whichcan then be used to access a database for that user/CPE). If the userhas met the acceptance criteria (e.g., has watched a sufficient portionof that same advertisement previously), then the trick mode function onthe user's DVR is enabled, and the user can FF or skip the ad.

In another variant, the user is presented a menu such as that describedabove, and the user can select which option they prefer (e.g., save forlater, skip, etc.); the menu is generated locally by the DVR/CPE andrendered on the user's viewing device (e.g., TV).

In yet another variant, the foregoing functions are combined; e.g., uponencountering an advertisement during FF operation, the user is presentedwith a menu enabling them to skip the advertisement if the foregoingevaluation of prior interaction (or “credits” as discussed supra)indicates such policy is to be enabled.

In one implementation, the DVR comprises mass storage (e.g., a SATA harddrive, or NAND flash memory), and the primary and secondary content arestored thereon, with the inclusion of markers that have been insertedinto the program stream marking, inter alia, the beginning and end ofeach advertisement. The DVR is also equipped with the NAVE functionalitypreviously described, such that it can identify advertisements as theyare encountered, and use that information to determine the user'seligibility for certain selected functions (e.g., skip or FF). When theuser in enabled for a “skip”, the user selects this function on theirDVR remote control (e.g., wireless remote), and the logic within the DVR(e.g., program stored in program memory or RAM of the DVR processingblock) accesses that sector of the disk (or memory address) associatedwith the “end” cue or marker in the recorded content. In that accessesto HDDs or flash are rapid and may occur to any part of the storage inliterally any order, advertisements that are recorded in a given linealsequence relative to the primary content may accordingly be skipped,permuted in order, traded for one another etc. simply by accessing thedifferent storage locations in a different sequence. Hence, numerousdifferent temporal threads or branches can be created locally by theuser based on his/her choices and/or prior interaction relative to eachsecondary content element (e.g., advertisement).

The foregoing functionality can, in one variant, be retrofitted ontoextant premises DVRs simply through a software addition or download, andthe transmission of the appropriate markers or cues in the content whentransmitted by the network operator. On-screen displays of functions canalso be used; e.g., instead of enabling the extant FF function on theuser's DVR remote unit, an interactive on-screen menu can be used toprovide the user functions for which there is no existing button (e.g.,skip). This is especially true of touch-screen enabled devices such astablet computers; e.g., a user streaming and recording content on theirWi-Fi enabled tablet (or viewing content recorded on their DVR and usingthe tablet to watch it while mobile); an application installed on thetablet in one embodiment provides the foregoing menu and/oradvertisement enforcement functions, thereby relieving the networkoperator of providing this functionality at the headend as in some otherembodiments described herein. Hence, a tablet user who is also an MSOsubscriber can download the MSO's “app”, which implements theenforcement/menu functions in relation to, e.g., trick modes used withrespect to the MSO-provided content. In one such implementation, theuser interaction, credit, and/or NAVE databases are retained locally onthe DVR (or even the tablet itself) such that all of the evaluation canbe performed locally at the user's premises. In other implementations,one or more of the foregoing databases are retained at a network storagelocation (e.g., server at the hub or headend), and the premises CPEmessages the server with identifying information for the user (andadvertisement at issue) to obtain the necessarypolicy/enforcement/credit information.

In another embodiment, a user who has initiated fast forwardfunctionality during a program may be presented with an alternativeadvertisement as a semi-transparent “overlay”, which may further beaccompanied by alternative audio and/or interactive functionalityrelated to such advertisement. For example, a “Drink Coca-Cola®” brandlogo may appear during fast-forward, with audio “Drink Coca-Cola®. Press“A” to receive your coupon for a free Coke®.”

Individualized Content Channel Variants

-   -   In another aspect, the foregoing techniques may be combined with        personalized virtual or other content channel approaches to,        inter alia, leverage data relating to user behavior on a        per-user basis. See for example co-owned and co-pending U.S.        patent application Ser. No. 12/414,554 filed Mar. 30, 2009        entitled “Personal Media Channel Apparatus and Methods” which is        incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, which        discloses methods and apparatus for “fused” targeted content        delivery in a content-based network. Specifically, a        substantially user-friendly mechanism for viewing content        compiled from various sources is provided, including, inter        alia, DVR, broadcast, VOD, Start Over, etc. Content selected to        align with a user's preferences is displayed as a substantially        continuous stream as part of a “virtual” user-based channel. In        one embodiment, a user profile is constructed and targeted        content gathered without requiring any user intervention        whatsoever; e.g., based on a user's past or contemporaneous        interactions with respect to particular types of content. This        information can be generated by, for example, a recommendation        “engine” such as that described in co-owned U.S. patent        application Ser. No. 12/414,576 filed Mar. 30, 2009 entitled        “Recommendation Engine Apparatus and Methods”, and issued as        U.S. Pat. No. 9,215,423 on Dec. 15, 2015, which is also        incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. The “virtual        channel” acts as a centralized interface for the user and their        content selections and preferences, as if the content relevant        to a given user were in fact streamed over one program channel.        The compiled content may also presented to the user in the form        of a “playlist” from which a user may select desired content for        viewing and/or recording. The user is able to navigate between        on-demand content, the virtual channel, an EPG, a search tool,        and a DVR navigation tool from a single user interface (e.g.,        on-screen display).

In another aspect, client applications (e.g., those disposed on asubscriber's CPE and/or network servers) are utilized to compile theplaylist based on user-imputed as well as pre-programmed user profiles.Various feedback mechanisms may also be utilized to enable the clientapplication to “learn” from the user's activities in order to update theuser profile and generate more finely-tuned and cogent recommendations.Client applications may also be utilized to manage the seamlesspresentation of content on the virtual channel, and locate/flag variousscenes inside selected content for user viewing or editing.

Accordingly, in one variant, targeted advertising or promotions may beselectively inserted or enforced within the programming for theaforementioned virtual personalized channel. Specifically, by knowingthe particular prior behavior of a particular user, more accurate“mapping” of advertisement or promotion enforcement to each individualuser may be accomplished.

CPE

FIG. 6 illustrates an exemplary embodiment of the improved CPE accordingto the present disclosure.

As shown in the simplified diagram of FIG. 6, the exemplary device 206,306 generally comprises an OpenCable (OCAP)-compliant embedded systemhaving an RF front end 602 (including tuner and demodulator/decryptors)for interface with the HFC network 101 of FIGS. 1-1 d, digitalprocessor(s) 604, storage device (memory) 606, and a plurality ofinterfaces 608 (e.g., video/audio interfaces, IEEE-1394 “Firewire” orThunderbolt™, USB, serial/parallel ports, etc.) for interface with otherend-user apparatus such as televisions, personal electronics, computers,Wi-Fi or other network hubs/routers, etc. A mass storage device 609(e.g. HDD or the like) may also be provided, and can be used for, e.g.,DVR storage of content, storage of the local watermark database 304,etc.

Other components which may be utilized within the device (deleted fromFIG. 6 for simplicity) include various processing layers (e.g., DOC SISMAC or DAVIC OOB channel, MPEG, etc.) as well as media processors andother specialized SoC or ASIC devices. The CPE 206, 306 may alsocomprise an integrated HD decoder, thereby relieving any connectedmonitors or other devices from the requirement of having such a decoder.These additional components and functionality are well known to those ofordinary skill in the cable and embedded system fields, and accordinglynot described further herein.

The CPE of FIG. 6 is also provided with an OCAP 1.0-compliantapplication and Java-based middleware which, inter alia, manages theoperation of the device and applications running thereon (including theaforementioned client software process where used). It will berecognized by those of ordinary skill that myriad different device andsoftware architectures may be used consistent with the selectiveenforcement functions of the present disclosure, the device of FIG. 6being merely exemplary. For example, different middlewares (e.g., MHP,ARIB, or ACAP) may be used in place of the OCAP middleware of theillustrated embodiment.

The exemplary CPE further comprises a conventional “Watch TV”application or the like, which services those program or user channelsavailable over the network. The Watch TV application, residing inmemory, provides such functions as channel navigation control, channelselection in response to a channel change event, etc. In one embodiment,the Watch TV (or EPG) application further comprises all necessaryfunctionality need to support the data collection client process.

In another embodiment, the CPE 206, 306 comprises a converged premisesdevice, such as for example that described in co-owned U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 11/378,129 filed Mar. 16, 2006, entitled “METHODSAND APPARATUS FOR CENTRALIZED CONTENT AND DATA DELIVERY”, and issued asU.S. Pat. No. 8,347,341 on Jan. 1, 2013, incorporated herein byreference in its entirety.

As previously noted, the CPE of FIG. 6 further comprises in oneembodiment a client application or module configured to collect and/ortransmit data, in the form of, e.g., a software application running onthe CPE. This software application may be configured to perform anynumber of functions relating to selective advertising or promotiondelivery and enforcement, including without limitation: (i) identifyingdelivered secondary content having watermarking or other codingcontained therein; (ii) extracting the watermark or coded information,and (iii) utilizing the extracted information to facilitate selectiveenforcement. For example, in one variant (corresponding to thenetwork-centric variant discussed supra), the client device applicationis configured to send the extracted watermark information (e.g., NAVEaudio encoding) to a network entity such as a headend server, so as topermit the headend server or other headend entity to identify theassociated content (and hence update the database as to “watched” eventsfor the relevant CPE).

Alternatively, the client application/CPE may be configured with moreinnate intelligence, such as where the aforementioned contentidentification (if used) is performed at the CPE (such as via a locallystored database, lookup table, or other data structure); subsequently,data reflecting this identification is passed up to the headend forimplementation of relevant enforcement policies based on the data.

As yet another configuration, the CPE/application may be configured toactually make selective enforcement decisions locally (such as via alocally stored advertisement identification database, and stored historyof the user/CPE activities), and pass the decision to the server orother responsible network entity, or even implement the decision itself(as in FIG. 3 herein).

Moreover, it will be appreciated that while primary embodiments of themethods and network/client apparatus set forth herein are described,wherein the network side (e.g., headend) enforces policies relating tosecondary content viewing with respect to “cloud” based storage anddelivery paradigms (e.g., Start Over or Look Back functions), thevarious aspects of the disclosure may be applied to locally storedcontent; e.g., that stored on a premises DVR. While most DVRimplementations generally do not enforce any sort of rules orrestrictions regarding trick modes or playback of recorded secondarycontent, it is appreciated that substantial utility may nonetheless bederived from the application of the principles of the present disclosurein such cases. For example, a user of the premises DVR may not rememberthat they previously watched a given ad, and hence could in oneimplementation be alerted (e.g., via on-screen icon, message, audibletone, etc.) that the advertisement they are watching has already beenviewed, at which point they could FF or skip the advertisement (ordecide that they want to see it again).

Any data of interest may be directly transmitted from the CPE (“pushed”)to the upstream entity (e.g., server, or software portion, such as viaan OOB message or other communication), or stored or logged in a fileand sent when requested or “pulled” by the network entity (or accordingto other models, such as being sent periodically, on CPE startup, etc.).

The CPE 106 may also be in communication with, or may itself constitute,a mobile device, such as a wireless-enabled smartphone, tablet computer,laptop computer, etc. For example, in one variant of the CPE (notshown), the CPE is a tablet computer enabled for wireless (e.g., Wi-Fi)communication with a hotspot (802.11 AP), such that the user can receiveMSO-originated nDVR, Look Back, Start Over, etc. services at the tabletdevice, and any trick mode functions (such as FF or skip) can beselectively enforced on the tablet (as if it was the user's premisesCPE).

Business Methods and Rules Engine

Various exemplary business-related aspects of present disclosure are nowdescribed in greater detail, along with exemplary embodiments of a“rules engine”.

Specifically, in another aspect of the disclosure, the aforementionedselective enforcement architectures (e.g., including one or morecomputer programs) optionally include an entity having an operationsand/or business rules “engine”. This engine comprises, in an exemplaryembodiment, a series of software routines that are adapted to controlthe enforcement of functions (e.g., trick modes on stored secondarycontent). These rules may also be fully integrated within theaforementioned one or more computer programs and be controlled via theentity on which the program is run, which may be for instance thenetwork server 202 of the architecture 200 of FIG. 2, or alternativelyon the CPE 306 of the architecture 300 of FIG. 3. In effect, the rulesengine comprises a supervisory entity which monitors and selectivelycontrols the selective enablement of the foregoing functions at a higherlevel, so as to implement desired operational or business rules of theMSO or other parties of interest (e.g., advertisers or promoters).

The rules engine can be considered an overlay of sorts to the algorithmsof the previously described computer applications. For example, theexemplary computer application may invoke certain operational protocolsor decision processes based on data received (e.g., prior history ofviewing of certain secondary content), as well as network operational orhistorical data, demographic data, geographic data, etc. However, theseprocesses may not always be compatible with higher-level business oroperational goals, such as maximizing profit on a network-wide basis (orafter consideration of other factors not examined by the collectingentities such as advertising revenue, RTA/acquisition costs, “costs” ofdelivering streams based on required bandwidth, taxes, maintenance orrepair costs, additional equipment leasing or use costs, etc.), orsystem reliability and/or flexibility. As but one example, a user mayhave already viewed a given ad, and hence qualifies to FF or skip it,but where the advertisement is flagged of one of importance orsignificance to the advertiser, or which has a dynamic temporal ordemographic component (e.g., is varied as a function of time/date, orhas a particular demographic relevance), the rules engine may overridethe selective enablement and force the user to watch it again.Similarly, where the user has affirmatively or passively indicated apreference for certain types of content, the rules engine mayselectively override the selective enablement or disablement decisions.

Per user/CPE data may also be considered in the selective enforcementlogic; e.g., if a given user or CPE historically does not FF or skipadvertisements even when enabled to do so, it can be inferred that theassociated user has a relatively high “threshold for advertising pain”,and hence all or a portion of the advertisements that would otherwise beselectively enabled are not.

It will be recognized that while certain aspects of the disclosure aredescribed in terms of a specific sequence of steps of a method, thesedescriptions are only illustrative of the broader methods of thedisclosure, and may be modified as required by the particularapplication. Certain steps may be rendered unnecessary or optional undercertain circumstances. Additionally, certain steps or functionality maybe added to the disclosed embodiments, or the order of performance oftwo or more steps permuted. All such variations are considered to beencompassed within the disclosure herein.

While the above detailed description has shown, described, and pointedout novel features of the disclosure as applied to various embodiments,it will be understood that various omissions, substitutions, and changesin the form and details of the device or process illustrated may be madeby those skilled in the art. The foregoing description is of the bestmode presently contemplated. This description is in no way meant to belimiting, but rather should be taken as illustrative of the generalprinciples of the disclosure. The scope of the disclosure should bedetermined with reference to the claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A computerized method of providing one or more content rendering functions to a computerized user device within a content distribution network, the computerized method comprising: causing provision of digital content to the computerized user device via the content distribution network, the digital content encoded with first data characterizing at least one attribute of the digital content; receiving second data via the content distribution network, the second data determined based at least in part on the first data characterizing the at least one attribute of the digital content; determining, based on the second data, that digital content has been at least partially rendered in accordance with a network-predetermined temporal criteria by at least one of a) the computerized user device or b) another computerized client device associated with a user of the computerized user device; and based on the determining, modifying an operation of at least one of (i) a computerized rendering function for the digital content or (ii) a computerized control function for the digital content, at the computerized user device; wherein the modifying of the operation of the at least one of (i) the computerized rendering function or (ii) the computerized control function, comprises enabling the computerized user device to execute at least one of (i) a fast-forwarding operation, or (ii) a skip operation, with respect to the digital content.
 2. The computerized method of claim 1, wherein the receiving of the second data comprises receiving identifying data relating to one or more user profiles, the one or more user profiles (i) based at least in part on prior-to-then user activity associated with the computerized user device or the user thereof, and (ii) comprising information utilized for the modifying.
 3. The computerized method of claim 1, further comprising: utilizing the second data to identify second digital content having a prescribed relationship with the digital content, the prescribed relationship based at least in part on association with a particular product or service advertised via the digital content; and determining that the digital content and the second digital content are different in at least one aspect.
 4. The computerized method of claim 3, wherein the determining that the digital content and the second digital content are different in the at least one aspect is based at least on evaluating data relating to each of the digital content and the second digital content, with respect to at least one of (a) timestamp, (b) version information, (c) advertiser, or (d) the particular product or service.
 5. The computerized method of claim 1, wherein the receiving of the second data comprises receiving the second data from one or more computerized devices which are both (i) different than the computerized user device, and (ii) associated with the user of the computerized user device.
 6. The computerized method of claim 5, further comprising: storing the second data received from the one or more computerized devices at a cloud-based storage entity in data communication with at least the computerized user device.
 7. The computerized method of claim 1, wherein the determining, based on the second data, that the digital content has been at least partially rendered in accordance with the network-predetermined temporal criteria by at least one of the a) the computerized user device or b) the another computerized user device associated with the user of the computerized user device comprises determining, based on the second data, that the digital content has been at least partially rendered by at least one of the a) the computerized user device or b) the another computerized user device associated with the user of the computerized user device within a prescribed time period from a time of the provision of the digital content.
 8. The computerized method of claim 1, wherein the enabling of the computerized user device to execute the at least one of (i) the fast-forwarding operation, or (ii) the skip operation, with respect to the digital content, comprises causing: (i) adjustment of a frame rate of a video portion of the digital content; (ii) adjustment of an audio portion of the digital content, and (iii) causation of the adjusted audio and video portions to be delivered to the at least one of the computerized user device or the another computerized user device.
 9. The computerized method of claim 1, wherein the enabling of the computerized user device to execute the at least one of (i) the fast-forwarding operation, or (ii) the skip operation, with respect to the digital content, comprises enabling the computerized user device to cause storage of digital advertising content in a cloud-based storage location for subsequent viewing in order to view digital primary content.
 10. The computerized method of claim 1, wherein: the digital content comprises a full-length advertisement; and the modifying of the operation of the at least one of (i) the computerized rendering function or (ii) the computerized control function, further comprises causing replacement of the full-length advertisement with an advertisement that is shorter in length than the full-length advertisement.
 11. The computerized method of claim 1, wherein: the first data comprises digital watermark data; and the receiving of the second data comprises receiving at least one of: (a) raw digital watermark data, the raw digital watermark data comprising the digital watermark data extracted from the digital content by computerized logic on the computerized user device, or (b) state information comprising viewing data associated with the digital content, the state information (i) based on an exchange of one or more protocol-based cookies between a server apparatus of the content distribution network and the computerized user apparatus, and (ii) generated by the computerized logic on the computerized user device.
 12. Computer readable apparatus comprising a non-transitory storage medium, the non-transitory storage medium comprising at least one computer program having a plurality of instructions, the plurality of instructions configured to, when executed on a processing apparatus, cause a computerized apparatus to: receive data representative of a request to access digitally rendered primary content via a content delivery network, the request originating from a computerized client device; determine whether digitally rendered secondary content associated with the digitally rendered primary content has been at least partially rendered by at least one of a) the computerized client device orb) another computerized client device associated with a user of the computerized client device, the at least partial rendering being outside of a prescribed time period from a time of the request; and cause a modification of an operation of at least one of (i) a computerized rendering function or (ii) a computerized control function, as part of the access to the digitally rendered primary content by the computerized client device, the modification comprising enablement of an ability to replace the digitally rendered secondary content with an instance of different digitally rendered secondary content, and render the different digitally rendered secondary content as part of the access to digitally rendered primary content.
 13. The computer readable apparatus of claim 12, wherein the plurality of instructions are further configured to, when executed on the processing apparatus, cause the computerized apparatus to: extract data from at least one of the data representative of the request or the digitally rendered primary content; and wherein the determination of whether the digitally rendered secondary content associated with the digitally rendered primary content has been at least partially rendered by the at least one of a) the computerized client device or b) the another computerized client device associated with the user of the computerized client device, outside of the prescribed time period from the time of the request, comprises utilization of the extracted data.
 14. The computer readable apparatus of claim 12, wherein the plurality of instructions are further configured to, when executed on the processing apparatus, cause the computerized apparatus to: receive second data, the second data comprising data indicative of a watermark, the data indicative of the watermark configured to enable at least identification of at least one instance of the digitally rendered secondary content; and enable data communication with a database, the database comprising a plurality of watermarks stored thereon; and wherein the determination comprises utilization of at least the second data to determine a bit-wise match of the data indicative of the watermark with the at least one instance of the digitally rendered secondary content.
 15. Computerized network apparatus configured for causation of one or more digital content control functions, the computerized network apparatus comprising: processor apparatus; network interface apparatus in data communication with the processor apparatus; and storage apparatus in data communication with the processor apparatus, the storage apparatus comprising at least one computer program configured to, when executed on the processor apparatus, cause the computerized network apparatus to: receive data representative of a request to access digitally rendered primary content via a content delivery network, the request originating from a computerized client device; determine whether digitally rendered secondary content associated with the digitally rendered primary content has been at least partially rendered by at least one of a) the computerized client device or b) another computerized client device associated with a user or user account of the computerized client device, within a prescribed time period from a time of the request; and cause a modification of an operation of at least one of (i) a computerized rendering function or (ii) a computerized control function, as part of the access to the digitally rendered primary content, by the computerized client device, the modification comprising enablement of an auto-skip functionality configured to skip the digitally rendered secondary content as part of the access to the digitally rendered primary content.
 16. The computerized network apparatus of claim 15, wherein the determination comprises: extraction of data from at least one of the data representative of the request or the digitally rendered primary content; and utilization of at least part of the extracted data for the determination.
 17. The computerized network apparatus of claim 15, wherein: the at least one computer program is further configured to, when executed on the processor apparatus, cause the computerized network apparatus to receive data indicative that the digitally rendered secondary content has been at least partially rendered by the another computerized client device; and the data indicative that the digitally rendered secondary content has been at least partially rendered by the another computerized client device is based at least on the another computerized client device (i) being within wireless range of a wireless node in data communication with the computerized client device, and (ii) receiving a download of the digitally rendered secondary content.
 18. The computerized network apparatus of claim 15, wherein the at least one computer program is further configured to, when executed on the processor apparatus, cause the computerized network apparatus to update a database indicative of a history of interaction by the at least one of the computerized client device or the another computerized client device with respect to the digitally rendered secondary content.
 19. The computerized network apparatus of claim 15, wherein: the determination comprises a determination that the digitally rendered secondary content associated with the digitally rendered primary content has been partially rendered by at least one of a) the computerized client device or b) the another computerized client device associated with the user of the computerized client device, within the prescribed time period from the time of the request; and the auto-skip functionality comprises a functionality that automatically skips from an extant viewing point of the digitally rendered primary content to a portion of the digitally rendered secondary content which has not been rendered by at least one of a) the computerized client device or b) the another computerized client device associated with the user of the computerized client device.
 20. The computerized network apparatus of claim 15, wherein the prescribed period of time is predetermined by a software process controlled by an operator of a managed content distribution network. 